Category: Top-10 Lists

Tiny but mighty: Shortest heavyweight champions ever

Boxing Junkie presents in the special feature the shortest heavyweight champions of all time.

Boxing Junkie recently presented a list of the tallest heavyweight champions of all time, with the 7-foot skyscraper Nikolai Valuev at the top of the angular heap.

Now it’s the little guys’ turn. In this special feature, we give you the shortest men to hold one world heavyweight title or another since John L. Sullivan opened the modern era when he was recognized as champion in the mid-1880s.

Only eight men under 6 feet have won the sport’s greatest prize in 135 years and no one has done it since the 5-11 Roy Jones Jr. beat John Ruiz in 2003.

Note: The heights used for this feature come from BoxRec.com, the official record keeper for professional boxing.

Here is the list (by height, or lack thereof).

 

NO. 1 TOMMY BURNS

Height: 5-7
Active: 1902-20
Record: 47-4-8 (35 KOs)
Reign(s): 1906-08
Background: What Burns lacked in height he made up for with quickness and pluck. The French-Canadian, whose real name was Noah Brusso, defeated bigger men by moving inside to inflict damage and then getting out quickly to avoid it. That’s how he beat the sub-6-foot, but heavier Marvin Hart to win the heavyweight title by decision in 1906 in Los Angeles. Burns made several defenses and then took his championship belt on a successful world tour, finishing his title run with eight consecutive knockouts. Disaster loomed, though. Following him on much of that tour was Jack Johnson, whose goal was to lure Burns into the ring. Johnson finally convinced Burns to fight him on Dec. 26, 1908 in Sydney. A $30,000 payday for Burns, the most ever earned by a boxer to that point, made it impossible to say no. Police halted Johnson’s slaughter of Burns, who officially lost a decision. He still has the distinction of being the shortest heavyweight champion.

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Special feature: 10 greatest heavyweights of the modern era

Tyson Fury has made it clear that he’s more than a big personality. The “Gypsy King” is a damn good fighter, arguably the best heavyweight since the hey-day of Lennox Lewis. Those are the kind accolades you earn when you embarrass long-reigning …

Tyson Fury has made it clear that he’s more than a big personality. The “Gypsy King” is a damn good fighter, arguably the best heavyweight since the hey-day of Lennox Lewis.

Those are the kind accolades you earn when you embarrass long-reigning Wladimir Klitschko, leave boxing to tangle with personal demons and then return to draw with and then knockout then-unbeaten Deontay Wilder in sensational fashion.

Anyone who doesn’t believe Fury is the best heavyweight today isn’t paying attention.

But where does he rank among the most-accomplished heavyweights of the modern era, meaning those who had fights after World War II?

Well, he’s already knocking on the door of the Top 10 but, in our estimation, he isn’t quite there. His legacy is still under construction. Another victory over Wilder and one over U.K. rival Anthony Joshua in all likelihood would allow him to crack the list.

With that in mind, here is the Boxing Junkie list of the 10 best heavyweights of the modern era (plus the next five).

NO. 10 SONNY LISTON

Record: 50-4 (39 KOs)
Years active: 1953-70
Title reigns: One (1962-64)
Among his victims: Cleveland Williams (twice), Nino Valdes, Zora Folley, Eddie Machen, Floyd Patterson (twice), Chuck Wepner
Background: Liston was a role model for a young George Foreman, an ornery, intimidating man who used a pulverizing jab and frightening power punches to lay waste to his early opponents in a way that Foreman and Mike Tyson did years later. By the early 1960s, the Mob-connected slugger was considered heavyweight champion in waiting. Cus D’Amato, titleholder Floyd Patterson’s manager, feared Liston to such a degree that he did everything in his power to steer his protégé away from the top challenger but ultimately failed. Liston obliterated Patterson in one round to become champ in 1962 and then did it again 10 months later. He seemed to be something beyond human. And then he had the misfortune of crossing paths with Cassius Clay, who would become Muhammad Ali. The young, brash Clay was too quick, too athletic and much too good for the champion, who was stopped in six rounds in their first fight in 1964 and in one round in the “Phantom Punch” rematch. Were either of the fights fixed? We’ll never know. What we do know is that Liston never again fought for a major title. He was found dead in 1971. The official cause: heroin overdose. Many believe something more sinister played a role.

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10 tallest heavyweight titleholders

Boxing Junkie presents the 10 tallest heavyweight champions in history.

The top end of heavyweight scene is the land of the giants.

Anthony Joshua, who holds three of the four major titles, is 6-foot-6 and he’s the short guy. Tyson Fury and titleholder Deontay Wilder, who will meet in a rematch on Feb. 22, are 6-9 and 6-7, respectively.

With the current champions and top contender in mind, Boxing Junkie presents the 10 tallest heavyweight titleholders in history (from shortest to tallest).

 

PRIMO CARNERA

Height: 6-5½ (1.97)
Active: 1928-46
Record: 88-14 (71 KOs)
Titles: World
Background: Carnera is a tragic figure in one sense. The massive Italian, who weighed as much as 284½ when he fought, enjoyed considerable success and the fame and fortune that went along with it. That included a sixth-round knockout of Jack Sharkey to win the heavyweight title in 1933. Fans seemed to be fascinated by both his size and power. However, prevailing wisdom is that many of his biggest fights – including the one against Sharkey – were fixed as a result of his connections to underworld figures, although Sharkey denies it. Carnera’s handlers reportedly arranged the fixes without his knowledge. In other words, the crude “Ambling Alp” wasn’t nearly as good as his record might suggest. Don’t feel too sorry for him, though. He immigrated to the U.S. and later had a successful career as a wrestler and part-time actor.

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The 10 best boxing movies of the decade

As we get closer to the Final Bell of the 2010s, let’s take a look at the 10 best.

By now, you know most of the great boxing movies. There’s Rocky, the ultimate battle of uncontested headshot to uncontested headshot against Apollo Creed, or that time he won over the hearts of Russia while defeating Ivan Drago. Humphrey Bogart’s performance in The Harder They Fall was perfect, just as Hitchcock’s imagery and choreographed perfection in The Ring was anything—oddly enough—but silent. And it’s almost impossible not to hoist Raging Bull and Million Dollar Baby atop the “All-Time Boxing Films” list.

Because the genre works so well with audiences, complemented by the rise of documentary films, more and more boxing tales are being produced, including over 10 in this decade.

As we get closer to the Final Bell of the 2010s, let’s take a look at the 10 best.

 

Undercard: China Heavyweight

(Photo by Jeff Vespa/WireImage)

I.M.B.D. Score: 5.9

Rotten Tomatoes: 69%

So, technically this makes the 11th entry, but what’s a good boxing experience without a solid undercard? China Heavyweight is an interesting look at the rise of boxing in China after the 1959 ban was finally lifted. The documentary follows boxing coach Qi Moxiang and his search for boxing hopefuls who will compete in the Olympics (and beyond). The makeup of the documentary follows a widespread theme boxing film fans are used to experiencing: Rags to Riches.

In this case, it’s a chance for peasant teenagers to escape hardships and obtain something better. With that kind of stakes, director Yung Chang does a beautiful job capturing the all-in desperation each fighter is willing to subject themselves to, with the hopes of one day competing for not just a medal but also the admiration of the country.

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Special feature: 10 hardest punching heavyweights in modern history

Who are the hardest punching heavyweights in modern history? Here are the Top 10.

Deontay Wilder’s legend continues to grow with every spectacular knockout he delivers. The man can punch.

The Bronze Bomber demonstrated his unusual ability most recently on Nov. 23, when he ended the night of Luis Ortiz with one perfectly timed right hand from hell in the seventh round of a heavyweight championship fight Ortiz was winning on the cards.

But Wilder is hardly the first man to enter the ring with inhuman power. A number of legendary big men over the generations have had the ability to strike down their opponents with one blow as if they were hit a lightning bolt.

Who were the most lethal?

Here is a list of the 10 hardest punching heavyweights of the modern, post-World War II era (from No. 10 to No. 1).

 

NO. 10 LENNOX LEWIS

KO percentage (of wins): 78
Years active: 1989-2003
Record: 41-2-1
KOs: 32
KOs inside 3 rounds: 16
Notable KO victims: Frank Bruno, Andrew Golota, Oliver McCall, Tommy Morrison, Hasim Rahman, Donovan Rudduck, Mike Tyson
Background: Hall of Fame boxing writer Colin Hart paid Lennox Lewis the ultimate compliment in British boxing circles when he wrote about Lewis’ knockout of Razor Ruddock in 1992. Lewis put Ruddock down with a monstrous right hand in the first round and then finished the job in Round 2. Wrote Hart for The Sun: “The blow that floored Ruddock in the first round was, without doubt, the best single punch I’ve seen from a British heavyweight since ‘Enery’s ‘Ammer (a reference to Henry Cooper) put Cassius Clay on his backside at Wembley Stadium almost 30 years ago.” Lewis, an Olympic champion who held six major titles over a decade that he dominated, was a complete boxer. He was a good, athletic – especially for a 6-foot-4 man – and clever technician, with one of best jabs of his era. However, his straight right – usually landed from the perfect distance – was his calling card. When it landed flush, his fights generally changed in an instant. The Ruddock punch, the one that ended Hasim Rahman’s night in their rematch and the shots that led to Mike Tyson’s demise stand out but many more are noteworthy. One sparring partner reportedly said: “The man hit like a tank.”
More quotes: Graham Houston wrote for ESPN.com: “There were fights in which Lewis was frustratingly hesitant, but when he stepped in and really let the right hand fly he was one of heavyweight boxing’s most potent practitioners.” … TV commentator Max Kellerman once called Lewis “one of the most devastating right-handed punchers in the history of boxing. You don’t think Lennox has historical power in his right fist? OK, who has ever hit harder? George Foreman? Maybe in his first incarnation, when he had more snap on his punches, but then the 1973 version of big George checked in around 220. Lewis has him by nearly 30 pounds. Earnie Shavers? The champ has him by nearly 40. Foreman and Shavers hit harder for their size, but they were significantly smaller.”

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10 greatest fighters of all time

Boxing Junkie gives you the 10 greatest fighters of all time.

Many truly great fighters have graced the ring over the past century-plus.

To whittle that list down to a Top 10 is a monumental task, one involving a great deal of research and institutional knowledge on the part of the Boxing Junkie staff.

And that’s what we’ve done here, give you the 10 boxers we feel are the best the sport has ever produced.

Here is the list, from No. 10 to No. 1.

 

NO. 10 ROBERTO DURAN

 

Record: 103-16 (70 KOs)
Years active: 1968-2001
Titles won: World lightweight, world welterweight, world junior middleweight, world middleweight
Among his victims: Ken Buchanan, Esteban De Jesus, Saoul Mamby, Carlos Palomino, Ray Leonard, Pipino Cuevas, Davey Moore, Iran Barkley
Background: Duran was a fighter’s fighter, a snarling brute who happened to have sublime boxing ability and fight-changing power. The combination was something to behold. Duran would’ve been considered an all-time great had his career ended after his incredible lightweight years, as he built a record of 62-1 before he became a full-fledged welterweight. And he twice avenged the lone loss to fellow Hall of Famer Esteban De Jesus. Duran would fight another 23 years. He became the first to beat Sugar Ray Leonard, which left no doubt about his greatness. He quit in the rematch, which earned him scorn, but he rebuilt his reputation in part because of his resilience. He seemed to be finished when he lost to Wilfredo Benitez and Kirkland Laing but then stopped Pipino Cuevas and Davey Moore, and almost beat Marvin Hagler. In 1989, when he was 37, he outpointed Iran Barkley to win a middleweight title. That was his last hurrah. He fought until he was 50 but never won another big fight. That didn’t matter in terms of his legacy. His place among the most revered fighters was already secure.

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